Why common sense does not work when selling to schools.

I’ve only been pondering this morning’s news for ten minutes and I have a whole raft of examples of common sense not working as it should. If you have a moment, allow me to explain. (And, oh yes, there is a point to this.)

Automation and IT is increasing everywhere. Bus conductors have gone, the level of posting is about 10% of what it was 30 years ago, executives don’t have secretaries, machines do it all. There should be resultant changes to unemployment (up), wages (down) and productivity (up). But it is not happening.

There are explanations, but they are incredibly convoluted so I won’t bore you with them.

Here’s another funny one. Iceland’s football team have just had the greatest moment is their nation’s history; their first ever match in the World Cup. But it didn’t result in the largest TV audience for a football match in Iceland’s history. That’s a bit odd too.

Of course, if one digs around enough one can find explanations: history shows that employment, wages and productivity changes always lag much further behind industrial changes than governments like to suggest.

As for Iceland 99.6% of the TV audience watched the World Cup game compared to 99.8% who watch Iceland beat England two years before. The difference is marginal; more of interest was what the other 0.4% were watching and, come to that, why the alternative TV stations bothered to stay on air.

(That reminds me of another one. Until 1986 there was no TV at all in Iceland on a thursday. Honest. You can look it up.)

In short, there is no common sense. The sun doesn’t go around the earth although it looks like it does. The sun doesn’t change colour at sunrise and sunset. In terms of physics gravity exists although we can’t see it, but time doesn’t although we feel it. How weird is that?

The fact is, if you are advertising a product or service, and you want to get the audience’s attention, you can’t. Not all of your audience. In fact the more you try to reach everyone the fewer people you end up reaching. Only by trying to reach one group can you reach a decent proportion.

Common sense says that in advertising you should go for the middle ground. Advertisers found out decades ago that most of the time the best way is not to do this, but to go for one segment of the audience.

But I am not trying to convert you into writing wild and weird advertising emails. Rather I am saying, if you have an advert that does not work very well, send it in and we’ll offer some thoughts on why, and what you can do to put it right.

If the first advertisement was sent out by Schools.co.uk, we’ll not only help you write a new version, we’ll also send it out again for you for free.

And here’s one final thought: many email campaigns to schools do work. Where they don’t the most common reason for them not working is not the way the advert is written, nor the way the teachers are thinking, nor the money the school has available, but the web page the email advert links to.

If you would like to know why, we can have a look at your site and give you a few pointers. You don’t have to take any notice, but it could solve the issue.

Please call 01604 880 927 or email Stephen@schools.co.uk, or take a peek at our website onhow to build a landing page. That page also contains details of our free report on the subject which will help you further.